


Darkvision

by stuff_and_nonsense



Category: Critical Role (Web Series)
Genre: Established Relationship, F/M, Porn with Feelings, Sensation Play
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-06
Updated: 2018-11-06
Packaged: 2019-08-19 16:02:00
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,309
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16537757
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/stuff_and_nonsense/pseuds/stuff_and_nonsense
Summary: Nott can see in the dark. Caleb can't.





	Darkvision

It was a warm summer night, deep in the woods south of Felderwin. The sky was cloudy, moon and stars blotted out, and the tension in the air suggested a thunderstorm was on its way. Caleb and Nott sat on the ground under a tree, next to the last embers of a small fire. 

“I’ve set up the alarm thread wide around us,” Caleb said. “We haven’t seen many creatures in the woods around here, so I’m hoping that will be enough and we both can get some rest.”

“If you say so, Caleb,” Nott said. “Are you sure you don’t want me to keep watch? I don’t mind.”

“I don't want to keep you up all night,” Caleb replied. “And I won’t be any use on watch until I get Frumpkin back. I can’t see shit with the clouds like this. I’ll wake you up if anything comes inside the perimeter.”

Nott reluctantly agreed, and they tamped out the fire and lay down to sleep. Caleb found it difficult. Despite his words to Nott, he was nervous that something would come across them in the night. Besides that, it was too warm to get comfortable, even with his coat and books removed to use as a pillow, and the insects were out in force, filling the night with sound.

After a few hours of restless sleep, he felt something bump against him, and sat bolt upright. 

“Sorry Caleb!” came Nott’s voice from somewhere nearby. “I woke up, and I got a little jittery, so I was looking for my flask. I didn’t mean to wake you up too.”

“It’s fine,” he said. “I was barely asleep anyway.” He waved an arm in front of him, through empty space. “Are you close to me? I can’t see anything at all.”

“Yes, I’m right here,” she said. “Up by your head.” He felt her small hand come to rest on his hair, fingers curling into it. After a moment, she added, “I’ve got no room to judge, Caleb, but maybe you should brush this sometime.”

He laughed. “Would you like to comb it out?” She wouldn’t make the suggestion herself, but she’d seemed to enjoy it, the few times before they’d done that sort of task for each other. “We both seem to be wide awake anyway.”

She didn’t respond, but he felt a gentle tug on his hair as her fingers began to comb through it. It took a while, since his hair was a tangled rat’s nest, but he didn’t mind. No one besides her had done this for him – his hair had never been long enough – and it was nice, comforting. She hummed a little as she worked, soft and tuneless.

When she’d finished, he turned around to face her, or as close to it as he could guess. He reached out a hand, and she obligingly took it, wrapping her own around two of his fingers. He tugged her into his lap, and she nestled in, leaning in to his chest.

“May I kiss you?” he murmured.

“Of course,” she said. He leaned down, and bumped into what felt like her nose. She adjusted for him, and his mouth met her thin lips, soft and eager.

“I don’t really want to go back to sleep,” she said. “If you want to do this for a while…”

In answer, he kissed her again. Her hand moved to the back of his neck, claws scratching softly against his skin.

“Sorry,” she said, pulling away. “Did I hurt you?”

“Not at all,” he told her. “You’re being very gentle.” He liked the light scratch of her claws, in fact. It kept him grounded, reminded him he was here now with Nott, instead of with some other person long ago. “If you’d like to do more of that, in fact…”

“What, scratch you?” He couldn’t see her face, but he could picture her wince of guilt and fear, and his stomach turned.

“No, no. I’m not asking you to hurt me. But I can’t see you at all, and if you moved your hands around… You could surprise me, that’s all. It might be nice.”

“I think I know what you mean,” she said. “Take this off?” She tugged at his shirt.

He yanked it over his head, folded it up and set it behind him. She ran a hand down his bare chest, tips of her claws tugging at the hair there. He shivered. 

“Was that ok?” she asked.

“Yes, definitely,” he assured her. “That was a good shiver.”

“All right, good,” she replied. “I like this too. It’s nice to look at you like this. I’m very lucky.” She stroked his chest again, running her hand from the center down off to the side.

“Mmm,” he hummed. Every touch was comforting, even with her sharp claws so close to his bare skin. “I just wish I could see you too.”

She laughed, a little bitterly. “I’d have the better deal if you could.”

He wanted to disagree, to tell her she was lovely, but knew from experience that it would just make her uncomfortable. “Will you keep going?” he asked instead.

“Of course,” she replied. He heard her shift position, felt something tickle his chest: the ends of her hair, maybe, falling loose as she bent over him. Above them, a bit of moonlight broke through the clouds, and he saw the faint yellow gleam of her eyes, reflecting the light like a cat. He sat up to stroke her hair, and to kiss her again, quick and light. As the clouds shifted again, plunging them back into darkness, he lay back down and let himself relax, waiting for whatever she would do.

Her hands moved over him, exploring across his chest and stomach. It amazed him how many sensations could come from that: her sharp nails, her callused palms, the pads of her fingers all felt different. Unable to see, he was hyperaware of each touch of her hands against him.

He heard her clothing rustle again, and then she was straddling him, legs pressed against his hips, hands on either side of his rib cage. Her claws dug in a bit, enough to barely hurt, bringing him even more awake and aware. Something warm and wet was against his collarbone, then his neck. He felt her kiss her way up to his ear, small slick tongue and the barest hint of teeth. He hummed again, to let her know how nice it felt.

Her mouth traveled back down his neck and torso, ending daringly low, just above the waistline of his pants. A hand slipped inside to grip him there, wrapping around his cock. She was usually more tentative about that. Maybe the darkness had made her confident, helped her relax as well. He gasped a little as she started to stroke him. The world was small now, just her touch on his skin and the ground under his back. He dug his hands into the earth, the feeling of dirt and dead leaves helping to steady him as Nott continued. A final push, a wet finger over the tip of his cock, and he shuddered and came, the world shrinking again to just one sensation.

After he’d caught his breath, he wiped the mess off and put his shirt back on. He felt Nott lay down next to him, close against his side. The moon and stars were still hidden, and the person beside him could have been anyone, here in the dark. If he wanted, he could slip off into a memory, or a fantasy, any kind of beauty he could imagine. But instead he was here with Nott – who’d come to him when he had no one, who was kind and brave and clever – and he wouldn’t trade that for anything right now.


End file.
